1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording and reproducing apparatus, and particularly, the present invention relates to a recording and reproducing apparatus, in which one remote controller controlles both of the recording and reproducing apparatus and a set top box to be controlled by this recording and reproducing apparatus, a control method thereof, and a remote control device.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, an optical disk apparatus of a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) and a harddisk recorder or the like have been widely used, however, the operations of these recording and reproducing apparatuses can be carried out not only by an operational switch of the apparatus but also by a remote control device supplied with the apparatus. In this case, a technology that the single remote control device controls not only a main body of the recording and reproducing apparatus but also an additional tuner, namely, a peripheral device such as a set top box or the like has been known.
Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 6-311563 discloses a technology for evading interference of an operational signal into both of the main body and the peripheral device such as a VTR or the like by the single remote controller upon transmission of the operational signal to both of the main body and the peripheral device. In this case, when the remote control device transmits a signal to the main body of the VTR, the main body of the VTR transmits a transmission inhibit signal in order to inhibit transmission of an instruction signal from the remote control device to the peripheral device. Thereby, interference of the transmission signal from the remote controller to the main body of the VTR and the transmission signal from the main body of the VTR to the peripheral device (a CATV terminal device) are prevented.
However, according to the above-described prior art, in the remote control device, a key dedicated for the VTR apparatus and a key dedicated for the CATV terminal device as the peripheral device (the set top box) are provided respectively. As a result, a problem arises such that the apparatus cannot be made compact because the number of the operational key is increased.
In addition, there is another problem as follows. When controlling two apparatuses, namely, the main body of the recording and reproducing apparatus and the peripharal device to be controlled by an IR bluster from the main body of the recording and reproducing apparatus by one remote control device while continuously pressing one operational key of the remote control device, an optical signal including an instruction code is supplied from the remote control device to the recording and reproducing apparatus and the optical signal including the instruction code is supplied from the IR bluster of the recording and reproducing apparatus to a receiving unit of the peripharal device with delay. In this case, the optical signal from the remote control device and the optical signal from the IR bluster interferes each other at slightly deviated timing. And as a result, a problem arises such that the optical signal is saturated at the receiving unit of the peripharal device and the receiving unit of the peripharal device cannot receive the optical signal from the IR bluster certainly to cause false operation. It can be said that this problem is based on continuous radiation of a code in response to the key operation and an optical signal including continuous codes after the code from the remote control device when continuously pressing the key of the remote controller.